Terminal board clip



7, 1969 E. J. SOLTYSIK ETAL 3,421,135

' TERMINAL BOARD CLIP F1led March 31, 1967 Sheet E. J. SOLTYSIK ETAL3,421,135

TERMINAL BOARD CLIP Jan. 7, 1969 Filed March 31, 1967 -Sheet. 2 of3 Jan.7, 1969 I E. J. SOLTYSIK ETAL TERMINAL BOARD CLIP Sheet Q of 3 FlledMarch 31, 1967 fizwzcilfkj ligziu .7266 j 7 1544.454? 014/3 UnitedStates Patent 3,421,135 TERMINAL BOARD CLIP Edmund J. Soltysik, Chicago,and Francis E. Ryder,

Des Plaines, Ill., assignors to Illinois Tool Works Inc.,

Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 31, 1967, Ser. No.627,422

US. Cl. 339-217 10 Claims Int. Cl. H01r 9/12; H011- 35/00 ABSTRACT OFTHE DISCLOSURE This application discloses a sheet metal clip having ashank portion adapted to be snapped into an aperture of an electricallynonconductive supporting panel, said shank including fingers which arelaterally yieldable to permit insertion of the shank in a work apertureto spring outwardly automatically upon complete insertion, and thussecure the shank against unauthorized removal from the panel, theportion of the clip oppositely disposed from the shank having means fordetachably receiving the free extremity of an electrical conductor.

Specification It is an important object of the present invention toprovide a terminal clip of improved practical construction which may betelescopically associated with an apertured panel and secured on oneside thereof, and which is adapted after such association to accommodatethe free extremities of electrical conductors positioned on the oppositeside of the panel.

More specifically, the invention contemplates a novel shank portion foraccommodating the free extremities of electrical conductors on one sideof a panel, and novel structural means for detachably accommodating thefree extremity of an electrical conductor located on the opposite sideof the panel.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages will be more apparentfrom the following detailed descripition, when considered in connectionwith the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a clip or terminal which isrepresentative of one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the upper portion of the clip asdisclosed in FIG. 1, associated with a fragmentary portion of asupporting panel, an electrical conductor being shown in operative anddetachable association with the clip;

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line3-3 of FIG. 2, the dot-and-dash lines indicating the position of theshiftable clip arm or plate before it has been depressed to the solidline position;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevation of the clip of FIG. 1, as viewedfrom the line 4-4 of FIG. 1 after the clip has been telescopicallyassociated with the panel member;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view. of a modified form of clip,the upper portion of the clip having means for receiving a terminalscrew member;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 6-6 ofFIG. 5;

'FIGS. 7 to 16, inclusive, disclose a further modified form of clipequipped with a nonconductive sheath for supporting and insulating anelongated terminal member;

FIG. 7 being a side elevation of this modified clip disclosing theflexible arm of the clip in contact with the elongated terminal elementassociated with said sheath;

FIG. 8 is an elevational view taken from the right of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a view of the upper portion of FIG. 7, disclosing theshiftable arm of the clip in its lower position out of contact with theelongated terminal element;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the device as shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a central sectional view taken substantially along the line11-11 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is also a sectional view taken substantially along the line12-12 of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially along theline 13-13 of FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary perspective view of the electricallynonconductive support for the elongated terminal member of the clip;

FIG. 15 is a plan view of the device as shown in FIG. 14 prior tobending the terminal support to the position shown in FIG. 13; and

FIG. 16 is a fragmentary front elevational view of the terminal supportas shown in FIG. 15.

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like numerals have been employedto designate similar parts throughout the various views, it will be seenthat one embodiment of a clip conforming to the present invention isdisclosed in FIGS. 1-4 inclusive. The clip in these figures isdesignated generally by the numeral 18, the lower or shank portionthereof being designated by the numeral 20, while the upper portion orsection of the clip is designated generally by the numeral 22. The upperportion 22 is adapted to detachably accommodate the extremity of aconductor element 24 while the lower or shank portion 20 is designed forinsertion within an aperture 26 of a panel 28.

The shank portion 20 consists of two shank elements 30 and 32 dependingfrom and formed integral with opposed margins of a plate or body portion34. A locking finger 36, struck from the shank element 30, and acorresponding locking finger 38, struck from the shank element 32, arenormally inclined outwardly from. the plane of their respective shankelements. The free extremity of the finger 36 is bent to provide a panelengaging tongue 40 and the free extremity of the finger or arm 38 islikewise formed with a panel engaging tongue 42. These tongues 40 and 42are spaced equally from the plane of the plate or body 34 and areadapted to interlock with margins of the panel 28 defining the aperture26, as illustrated in FIG. 4. It will also be noted that these tongues40 and 42 are positioned diagonally opposite each other.

The shank element 30 is also provided with a struckout finger 44, andthe shank element 32 is provided with a corresponding diagonallypositioned finger 46. The finger 44 provides a deflected portion 48 andthe finger 46, at its free extremity, presents a similar tongue 50'. Thetongues 48 and 50 are equally spaced from the plane of the body plate45, but at a greater distance than the tongues 46 and 42, for purposesabout to be explained.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that the shank portion 20 of theclip 18 is adapted to be telescopically associated with the panelaperture 26 and When fully inserted will be secured in such position bythe cooperation of the tongues 49 and 42, as clearly illustrated in FIG.4. If the work panel is thicker than the panel 28, disclosed in thedrawing, the tongues 48 and 50 may then be brought into play for lockingthe clip into position.

The portion 22 of the clip 18 which is designed to accommodate theconductor member 24, includes a laterally shiftable arm 52 which isintegrally and hingedly connected at 54 with one margin of the platebody 34. One of the side margins of the plate 22 is provided with anextension 56, the intemediate portion 58 being struck outwardly as shownin FIGS. 1-4, inclusive. A section 60 of the arm 52 is bent oppositelywith respect to the section 58 so as to provide an aperture 62 foraccommodating the free extremity of the conductor 24. A section 64 ofthe arm 52 is bent laterally in a manner similar to the section 60, andthese sections are separated by a recess 66. It will be noted that thecentral portion of the body or plate 3-4 is struck out so as to providea hook 68 which is in registration with the recess 66. This hook is sopositioned that as the arm 52 is shifted from the position shown in FIG.1 to the position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the area defined by the freeextremity of the hook is brought into alignment with the aperture 62,and in this position the conductor 24 may be telescopically associatedwith the clip as shown in FIG. 2. In this position good electricalcontact is established between the conductor 24 and the clip 18.

It is common practice for the free extremity of an antenna conductor tobe formed with a right-angular bend, such as incorporated in theconductor 24. In such instances the presence of the extension 56 servesas a stop or abutment to limit the extent of axial insertion of the freeextremity of the conductor. It is important to prevent this extremity ofa conductor from projecting beyond the margin or edge of the arm. Clipsof the type just described are commonly mounted in adjacent relationshipalong a panel, and therefore should the extremity of the conductor 24project an appreciable amount beyond the margin of the arm 52, there isa potential hazard of contacting the next adjacent clip and thus causinga short circuit.

In FIGS. 5 and 6 a modified form of clip is shown which is designatedgenerally by the numeral 18a. A shank portion 20a of the clip 18a isstructurally similar to the shank portion 20 previously described. Theupper portion of the clip 18a does not incorporate the shiftable arm 52as shown in FIGS. 1-4 inclusive, but is provided with a screwaccommodating helix 70 struck from the plate or body portion 34a. Aterminal screw member 72 is employed to secure electrical contact of aconductor 24a with the clip 18a. Other structural features of the shank20a are designated by numerals bearing the suffix a corresponding withthe numerals employed in FIGS. 1-4, inclusive.

In FIGS. 7-l3, inclusive, a further modification of the clip is shown.In many respects the clip disclosed in FIGS. 7l3 inclusive, designatedgenerally by the numeral 18b, is similar structurally to the clip 18previously described. Parts of the clip 18b corresponding with parts ofthe clip 18 are designated by similar numbers, bearing the sufiix b. Thesimilarity of these corresponding parts will be quite apparent from thedrawings. An important distinguishing feature of the clip 18b is the useof an elongated electrical terminal or connector element 74. The upperextremity of the terminal member 74 extends laterally from an elongatedportion, as indicated in FIGS. 7, 9, and 11, and is designed to makeelectrical contact with the arm 52b of the clip member 18b when said armoccupies the position illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 11. The terminal member74 is insulated from the other portions of the clip 18b, and issupported in position by a member 76, made of suitable nonconductive,preferably bendable, material such as a suitable plastic. It will benoted that this member 76 includes a pair of sheath sections 78 adaptedto accommodate the upper portion of the conductor 74 when the parts 78are brought into juxtaposition with the recesses 80 of the sections 78in registration with each other. The member 76 initially assumes theshape shown in FIGS. 14-16, inclusive.

An area 82 of reduced cross-section facilitates bending at this point,enabling each half of the member 76 to be brought into registeringengagement with the other companion half. A protuberance 84, whenbrought into telescopic association with a complementary aperture 86, assures proper alignment of the recesses 88. Before the part 76 iscompletely folded together, the conductor 74 may be assembled within oneof the companion recesses 80.

Extending beyond each of the sheath sections 78 is a laterally flexiblefinger or latch member 88. When the member '76 has been folded so as tocompletely enclose the upper portion of the connector 74, the member 76may be inserted within the recess 6612, thereby bringing the fingers 88into interlocking or latching engagement with the hook member 6812, asclearly illustrated in FIG. 13. The member 76 is thus securely heldwithin and electrically insulated from the clip 18b when the arm 52boccupies the position shown in FIG. 9. In this position an electricalconductor such as the conductor 24 previously referred to may beconnected with a circuit such as an antenna circuit positionedexternally of the panel. On the other hand, if an internal antennacircuit is to be employed, it is only necessary to remove the conductor24, thereby enabling the arm 52b to be biased into contact with theupper extremity of the terminal member 74. The clip may now beelectrically coupled with an internal antenna circuit through aconductor 90 connected with the free extremity of the terminal member74. This is representative of only one of the many practicalapplications of the clip contemplated by the present invention.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present inventioncontemplates a sheet metal clip of novel and practical form. Thecombination of the novel snap-in shank portion with the novelarrangement for detachably accommodating a conductor extremity makes itpossible to mount a series of clips within adjacently positioned panelapertures without any danger of short circuits, and with the assurancethat the clip will be securely held in proper position upon the panel.By incorporating the elongated terminal member which may be selectivelyinsulated from or electrically connected with the sheet metal clip, theease with which antennas or other electrical devices may be selectivelycoupled with external or internal circuits, is greatly facilitated.

While for purposes of illustration certain structural features have beendisclosed herein, it should be understood that the present inventioncontemplates other modifications and changes and should be limited onlyby the scope of the appended claims.

The invention is claimed as follows:

1. In a generally U-shaped electric wire connector terminal clip formedof a single piece of relatively thin spring sheet metal, adapted to beoperatively secured to a relatively thin and generally form-retaininginsulating work panel by having its two legs inserted into a mountinghole in such panel, such clip having a central body portion constitutingthe base of the U and having two generally parallel juxtaposedhole-entering shank elements bent downwardly from said body portionalong generally parallel spaced apart boundaries thereof coincident withthe bend lines and constituting the two legs of the U and havingopposite external extensions extending laterally from opposite edges ofsaid body portion which are intermediate the aforementioned bend lineedges of said central body portion, the improvements which include agenerally elongated spring finger struck in its entirety from each ofsaid legs along a longitudinal edge thereof, with said spring fingersbeing resiliently connected with said legs at the ends of the springfingers farthest from said body portions, each of said spring fingers inits unsprung condition diverging outwardly from its connection with saidleg for a substantial portion of its length and then bent inwardlytoward said leg to form a tongue having an inclined upper panel engagingsurface facing generally in the direction of the aforementioned bodyportion of the clip, and means associated with said connector fordetachably accommodating an electrical conductor.

2. A one-piece sheet metal electrical clip as set forth in claim 1,wherein said plate-like member is substantially polygonal in shape andwherein one of said yieldable spring fingers is positioned in thevicinity of each corner of said body member.

3. A one piece sheet metal electrical clip as set forth in claim 2,wherein the free extremity of a pair of diagonally positioned springfingers is spaced a greater distance from the plane of the body than thefree extremities of a remaining pair of spring fingers whereby theinclined tongues on one pair of fingers will accept panels having agiven range of tolerances and the second pair of fingers will acceptpanels of an even greater thickness range.

4. A one-piece sheet metal electrical clip as set forth in claim 1,wherein the means for detachably accommodating an electrical conductorincludes a yieldable contact arm inclined to and hingedly connected witha margin of said body member, conductor accommodating hook means struckfrom within the margins of said body and with the closed end of saidhook extending upwardly toward said contact arm, a portion of saidcontact arm being recessed for telescopically accommodating said hookmeans when said arm is depressed toward said body, sections of said armon opposite sides of said recess being bent downwardly toward said bodyand a marginal extension on said contact arm being bent in the oppositedirection from said sections, said extension and said hook being adaptedto form a conductor receiving opening in cooperation with said bent downsections when said arm is depressed to form a four point support forsaid conductor, said marginal extension adapted to serve as limitingabutment when a bent conductor is inserted into said opening.

5. A sheet metal electrical clip including a plate-like body member,shank means for insertion within an aperture of a supporting workpiecesuch as a panel member, said shank means including yieldable workengaging members movable in one direction to permit telescopicassociation of said shank means within a work aperture and biased tospring laterally in the opposite direction into work-interlockingposition upon the complete insertion thereof, means associated with saidplate-like member for detachably accommodatng an electrical conductor,and an elongated electrical terminal supported on the clip and extendingsubstanatially normal to and traversing said plate-like body, an exposedextremity of said terminal member positioned on one side of said bodyand an opposite exposed extremity thereof side of said body.

positioned on the other 6. A sheet metal electrical clip as set forth inclaim 5, including means comprised of electrically insulating mate rialassociated with said plate-like body for supporting said elongatedterminal meber.

7. A sheet metal electrical clip as set forth in claim 5, wherein themeans for detachably accommodating an electrical conductor includes alaterally yieldable contact arm which is selectively engageable with anexposed extremity of the terminal member positioned on one side of theplate-like body member.

8. A sheet metal electrical clip as set forth in claim 5, wherein themeans for detachably accommodating an electrical conductor includes alaterally yieldable contact arm hingedly connected with said bodymember, said contact arm and body member being recessed to accommodatesaid elongated electrical terminal.

9. A sheet metal electrical clip as set forth in claim 5, wherein oneexposed extremity of said terminal member extends laterally of theremaining portion of said terminal member, and wherein said means fordetachably accommodating an electrical conductor includes a laterallyyieldable contact arm adapted selectively to contact the laterallyextending portion of said elongated terminal member.

10. A sheet metal electrical clip as set forth in claim 9, includingmeans comprised of electrically insulating material for supporting saidelongated terminal member on said plate-like body.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,313,572 8/1919 Baker et al.339-262 1,385,928 7/1921 Schwartz 339260 2,574,330 11/1951 Judd 339-2582,730,690 1/1956 Harasek 339216 3,050,706 8/1962 Kitscha 339-2563,340,497 9/1967 Balint 339-128 X OTHER REFERENCES Tinnerman ProductsFlash Bulletin, Flash No. 336,- January 1960.

RICHARD E. MOORE, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 339--260

